


radio silence

by lesbianferrissbueller



Series: also on tumblr! [3]
Category: Stranger Things (TV 2016)
Genre: Alternate Universe - Modern Setting, Angst, Fluff, Hurt/Comfort, M/M, Phone Calls & Telephones, Really Just Comfort, Texting, blink and youll miss it implied/referenced child abuse
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-05-02
Updated: 2020-05-02
Packaged: 2021-03-01 23:34:19
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 841
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/23961625
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/lesbianferrissbueller/pseuds/lesbianferrissbueller
Summary: Steve ended up crashing out anyway.So he was pretty dead asleep when his phone started ringing and his whole body registered it as an alarm to get up to go to school. Which meant a few moments of complete confusion at how pitch fucking dark his room still was.He picked up his phone.4:39amIncoming Call: billy🖤
Relationships: Billy Hargrove/Steve Harrington
Series: also on tumblr! [3]
Series URL: https://archiveofourown.org/series/1725826
Comments: 4
Kudos: 150





	radio silence

**Author's Note:**

> get u a man who will answer the phone at 4:39am. shoutout to @keysmashdnp i love you n junk

Radio silence days were usually bad. The less texts back Steve gets the more he assumed something was up. Not that Billy was particularly chatty, just that, at the very least he liked Steve's texts and would send periodic memes and _always_ responded to an 8-ball move within maybe ten seconds tops. 

So on the days that Steve doesn’t hear from Billy’s as much, or not at all, he worries. Just a bit, like static in the back of his head. Used to be static in the all of his head until Billy specifically requested that he not worry so much. So he still worried, just not as loud. 

Sundays were usually particularly shit. This Sunday, Steve heard from him twice all day.

A good morning snapchat at 10:52am - Steve sent one first with his glasses on, wearing one of Billy's shirts. Billy responded four minutes later. 

asshole🖤☠️: nice shirt where’d u get it

✨pretty boy✨: some loser

But that didn’t get any response. 

Then at 3:13pm Steve texted him just to say _hey how’s ur day_ , and Billy responded with a _fine, cant talk tho_. 

Steve tried again that night. 

11:34pm: _hey_

11:46pm: _I’m going to bed. See u tomorrow ❤️_

No response though. So he was worried. And he stayed up for another hour, took his phone off do not disturb. 

But he ended up crashing out anyway.

So he was pretty dead asleep when his phone started ringing and his whole body registered it as an alarm to get up to go to school. Which meant a few moments of complete confusion at how pitch fucking dark his room still was. 

He picked up his phone. 

4:39am 

_Incoming Call:_ billy🖤

Steve had never picked up a call quicker. 

“Hey,” he tried to push the sleep out of his voice. “What’s up?”

No response. He couldn’t even hear the static of breathing. 

“Billy?” 

His phone buzzed. He took it away from his ear. 

_cant talk. ur on mute_

_wanted to hear ur voice_

Steve put his phone on speaker to talk and read but it took him a sec and he got a more worried text - 

_you said I should call u if I ever needed_

_sorry this is dumb_

“You ok?” Steve said aloud. 

_i’ll be fine_

_keep talking_

“Ok,” Steve laughed a little, Maybe just to brush off any idea of oddness. “I dunno what you want me to talk about.”

_what did u do today_

Steve took off describing in as much detail as his half asleep brain would allow how much of nothing he’d done that day, finished it off with a “I dunno that’s all I can think of.”

Steve paused. Watched Billy's typing bubble pop up and disappear a few times. 

Steve, in a softer voice this time: “You sure you’re ok, baby?”

_when am i ever_

Steve laughed a little again. 

“I know you don’t always like it when I say this, but,” Steve paused a little “You know I love you, right?”

_i knw_

_*know_

It’s always harder to type when tears land on your screen- but Steve wasn't there to notice that detail. Couldn’t see Billy wiping the salt water off his screen with his sleeve.

Steve was quick to speak again. “You don’t have to say it back right now-“

_I love you too_

Steve smiled at the words. Like he always did. 

“You should try to sleep, though. Wanna stay on the phone?”

_yeah_

“Ok,” Steve felt the weight of his body in the early early morning cold, pulling his legs together under his blankets. “Well, I’m kinda falling asleep again. So, you know, goodnight.”

_night pretty boy_

A few minutes passed with Steve just laying on his side staring at the texts and the green call bar at the top of his screen, smiling. 

One more text:

_thank you_

“You don’t have to thank me, Bill,” Steve mumbled, phone in hand, eyes already closing. “Like I said. Love you.”

Billy was alone in his room, awake long after the rest of the house was asleep, trying and failing to keep his emotions where he put them, to not feel the crushing weight of what living at home entailed. And he was fully prepared to fall asleep with the salt of dried tears making the skin of his cheeks pull weird when he remembered Steve practically begging him to call next time that happened. He promised he’d pick up, no matter the hour. And for a second after he’d dialed Steve’s number, Billy thought maybe he wouldn’t answer and felt fucking dumb for even trying when he did. Steve did. 

And even if he was alone in his shitty room in his shitty house, just listening to Steve breathing on through his headphones made everything so much more… survivable. 

He could actually fall asleep like this. With someone having picked up the phone in the middle of the night and whispered goodnight and I love you. 

_like u said_

_love you too_


End file.
